Corona Virus - What Is it?

1. There is very little actually known about the virus except that which has been learnt, and will be learned as the crisis goes on. This doesn't sound too good, we know but on the positive side, most people will recover and experience only mild-flu like symptoms but you do need to self-isolate (more about that below and across these pages) if you experience any of the current symptoms as detailed on the NHS website.

2. The media and the government are keeping people updated on the television, in radio discussions and on the internet although, when it comes to civil liberties, the mainstream media are largely refusing to air the views of the people. We are doing our best to keep up to date and keep this website up to date for you and, as always, we uphold democracy and freedom of expression.

3. There has been changing information in the media that may have confused you, this is because we are all still learning about the Corona Virus. Originally, people were quarantined if they came back from China (that is not the case anymore), people were also originally told to call NHS 111. You now need to call 119 to book a test instead.

4. Only call NHS 111 immediately if your symptoms significantly limit your ability to undertake everyday tasks, if you have underlying health conditions that could complicate your recovery, you are elderly or you still have symptoms after 7 days, regardless of whether or not you are vulnerable.

5. There is no recognisable difference between the current Corona Virus (officially known as "Covid 19") and a standard cold/flu/other high temperature. We include colds as they can mimic the symptoms of the current Corona Virus. There has been a lot of reporting of loosing your sense of taste before coming down with corona virus. Please do check out all of our pages for further information as this page is intended to be more of a brief overview.

6. The Corona Virus affects the lungs and airways. It has spread across the whole world. The outbreak is thought to have started in China but this does not mean that ordinary Chinese people are responsible.

7. There are many questions that science cannot yet answer about illnesses, so if you see a Chinese person, please be kind to them, they are suffering as much as the rest of us. Conspiracy theories are no use as we will never be able to prove them but we remain open to debate on our forum. 5G was installed on top of tower blocks without resident's consent though on the Croydon Drive Estate.

8. We will refer to Covid-19 (SARS CoV-19) as “the Corona Virus” as the media have done.

9. A lot of people will only get mild flu-like symptoms, at that point they will have to self-isolate for 14 days and that will be it - as far as we know so far.

10. The most important thing to bear in mind is that Corona Virus deaths are increased by people not doing everything they can to avoid getting it in the first place (don't feel bad if you still do get it but at least you decrease your chances of being ill by taking precautions).

11. By self-isolating, if you show the symptoms, and keeping your distance from other people regardless, you are doing the best by our community, within Croydon Drive and outside of it.

12. You should keep an eye on your health and memorise the symptoms detailed on this website and the NHS website. Please also follow the advice on this website on how to avoid getting the Corona Virus in the first place and regularly visit here for updates. We are now including the date that an article here was written and when it was updated. We hope that this inspires confidence. Of course feel free to read main-stream media sources and other media-sources.

13. Self-Isolating when you have the symptoms means not leaving your flat. It means no face-to-face contact (even at a distance) with people and it means that you should not attend Dentists, GP Surgeries, Hospitals or Pharmacies and, as before, you should not be leaving your flat for 14 days, if you live on your own.

14. There are separate rules if you live with other people and you can find these on the other sections in the above menu (or, if you accessing this website on a mobile device, swipe left to right or press the square button with three lines in it).

15. The most recent position is that travel outside of the UK is now allowed to an increasing number of countries. Some countries will require you to go through a period of quarantine and you may be expected to quarantine upon returning to the UK from some countries. The UK Government's Foreign Office has more information. 16. It is also now legal to meet with groups of up to two households indoors and a maximum of 30 people outdoors. Anymore remains illegal and the gestapo can fine you and split you up.

17. Please now carefully read the other sections of the website and be aware that we will be adding or changing content as new information becomes known.

    References

Information is adapted from https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ (opens a new window)

    Additional Resources

gov.uk Corona Virus Action Plan (opens a new window).

.gov.uk Corona Virus Restrictions FAQs.

gov.uk: Information on Corona Virus and the Situation in the UK (opens a new window).

NHS England: Corona Virus for Health Professionals (opens a new window).

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG): Coronavirus Advice for Pregnant Women (opens a new window).

Had enough? We don't blame you - there is a free 30-day trial going on Netflix (no liability accepted - if you don't want it after the free month, you need to cancel in good time) by clicking here (opens in a new window). Note: Netflix may have suspended their free trial so please check with them first but don't tell them that you intend to cancel it obviously! We tried to telephone them but we could not get through. If they have stopped free trials during the Corona Virus pandemic, we encourage you to let us know and to also boycott them.

There's also a free 30-day trial going with Amazon Prime (no liability accepted - if you don't want it after the free month, you need to cancel in good time) by clicking here (opens in a new window).

We make no money from these links, we just found them on Google. You will need to carefully read terms and conditions for yourself. Be careful of data usage as streaming can incur serious costs, if in doubt, check with your service provider first.

There is also the Croydon Drive Chat Forum run by us (click "back to main website" in the menu above and you will see the main "forum" link) - please contact us for an invitation letter using the contact form on the main website, by telephoning us or by Emailing us if you have lost the last invitation letter sent. We are democratic, regardless of your views, you should always treat others with respect. We will be moderating the forum strictly but you are entitled to your view and we respect debate.

If you need emotional and practical support, don't hesitate to phone us. If we are unavailable, please leave a voicemail with your chosen method for us to reply.

Further Information..

The estate comprises of four tower blocks and two rows of houses split into two flats (there are no cows but most of these flats do smell of cheese due to the damp in them). Some of the flats across the estate contain 1 and, shockingly, 2 and 3 bedrooms.

Avro Hollows' Tenant Management Organisation purport to manage the estate on behalf of Manchester City Council, in association with Northwards housing (Northwards' Housing will, however, deny all knowledge of this). The estate is most definitely not run for the benefit of the local community with some residents describing the estate as an "open prison".

To find out more...please read our article "more about the estate" below.

Who We Are..

This website and its online community was set up by a resident on the Croydon Drive Estate who may or may not be closely related to C.G.B. Spender (the truth is not out there). It is entirely free to use and to become a member and it always will be. Personally identifiable information is not collected or stored protecting the anonymity of members. We only publish the tower block of the residents (so the person writing will be 1/72 or 71 people - dependent on the specific tower block).

It is not a breach of a resident's tenancy agreement to join Croydon Drive Independent Residents' Forum. The right to set up tenant groups is in fact specifically protected within resident's tenancy agreements.

The starting point for the forum was to create an online presence. The forum itself has the ability for members to send private messages (not read by the forum admin) and Members are encouraged to use their common sense in remaining anonymous and protecting themselves online. There is a reporting feature above all posts should anybody be concerned about the content - particularly where it is discriminatory or hateful - humour is of course allowed within reason.

Members are encouraged to have their say and provide feedback on the existing forum sections (including the popular "The Vent" and various general interests categories) and to request new ones. This also extends now to website content. We strongly urge residents to register using the unique registration code letters, most recently posted through doors in August 2019 by one of our kind elves.

The Croydon Drive Independent Residents' Forum is, unfortunately, not open to Contractors, Employees or Volunteers (including members) of Avro Hollows' Tenant Management Organisation, Northwards' Housing or Manchester City Council to protect the integrity of the forum and the anonymity of members and access is not permitted from locations run by them to protect the security of login details.

To ensure that our security policies are upheld vigorously for the benefit of members, we regularly lookup IP addresses that are logged when members log in. Our independence policy was ratified by members in 2018.

The Croydon Drive Independent Residents' Forum is set up by residents to further the interests of residents. It's that simple. A large part of that is to take the current Directorship (Avro Hollows' TMO) to task where they fail residents through causing as much embarrassment as possible.

If any residents struggle to register (you need to sign up using the register option), please do use the contact form link above (or the contact link on the forum itself).

If you are a resident who has not yet registered - what are you waiting for? A very warm welcome awaits!

About Our Estate..

The estate has security gates at every entrance where many tenants cannot get in and out of all of the gates without pressing the buzzer (although thieves can) and it has so many cameras that it puts Big Brother to shame. All tenants have their mugshots taken to aid with tracking them from the moment they leave their flat until they leave the estate (perhaps further?) and there is a 24 hour live feed available to lucky viewers on Channel Commsec.

Cameras are monitored by Commsec Security (when it suits them - incidents that tenants report are rarely ever captured) who, until at least very recently, controlled the access controls in Greater Manchester Police buildings - what do you know! Until recently, it was commonplace for gate intercom calls to go unanswered (including in 2020 to 7 fire engines attending a small kitchen fire in Lancaster Court), particularly in the winter, leaving tenants to get soaked. Commsec Security are, however, excellent at bellowing over the multiple speaker tannoy system from their offices about 1.5 miles away and regularly using foul language at the weekend when the Estate Manager isn't working..

There are entrance intercoms on each tower block. On two of them, tenants do not ever get to speak to their visitors as the dial pad has been removed and replaced with a camera, and, on the other two, Commsec Security like to randomly divert intercom calls to them when they get bored. On all four tower blocks, Commsec Security like to have a conversation with your guests instead, particularly when your food (and takeaway driver) is getting cold.

The MGMT..

We do have a highly motivated* Estate Manager (*highly motivated in going out of her way to cause trouble even though she has not been here very long) and, along with the Directors, the team ensure that the majority view of residents is never put forward and they won't think twice about harassing residents if they don't like you.

Employees are not disclosure and barring board checked and at least one has a serious criminal record, even though their employment at Avro Hollows' (which is paid for by Manchester City Council) could lead to them entering your home. "What happened to safeguarding" you might ask...

We take this moment to pay homage to the old Estate Manager who was a complete legend. More news on her leaving is due to hit you soon but it will make for very grim reading when we get her permission to publish it and we suspect the press will be very interested in Avro Hollows' TMO's behaviour too.

Our residents have had issue after issue with getting repairs carried out and with the way in which Manchester City Council and Northwards' Housing have managed new kitchen and bathroom provision on the estate. It is touch and go whether anybody answers the lift breakdown alarms and the quality of connection is so poor that they can't hear you when they do answer.

Contractors work without consulting residents and are as disruptive as possible. Complaints go nowhere when forwarded to Northwards' Housing. To this end, and more widely, Avro Hollows' TMO could not give a toss about what the resident majority want despite receiving around £250k a year of Manchester City Council funding. It's high time they went.

The Board..

The TMO board are extremely selective about who they invite to their meetings (you'd have more chance of being invited to bank with Coutts) and the majority of tenants do not get a look in or a say on anything at TMO board meetings where they are no longer announced for fear of tenants protesting.

Avro Hollows' TMO are certainly not there to make the experience of living on the Croydon Drive estate a "really happy one" unless you are one of a select few on the board with access to around £250k a year grant funding (from Manchester City Council).

Welcome to the Croydon Drive Independent Residents' Forum where we do things differently and respect each other.